Objective functional assessment of total hip arthroplasty following two common surgical approaches: the posterior and direct lateral approaches.

Despite the high number of total hip arthroplasty (THA) procedures performed each year, there is no common consensus on the best surgical approach. Gait is known to improve following THA although it does not return to what is typically quantified as normal, and surgical approach is believed to be a contributing factor. The current study evaluates postoperative hip function and provides an objective assessment following two common surgical approaches: the McFarland-Osborne direct lateral and the southern posterior.

Spoken language development in oral preschool children with permanent childhood deafness.

This article documented spoken language outcomes for preschool children with hearing loss and examined the relationships between language abilities and characteristics of children such as degree of hearing loss, cognitive abilities, age at entry to early intervention, and parent involvement in children's intervention programs. Participants were evaluated using a combination of the Child Development Inventory, the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, and the Preschool Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals depending on their age at the time of assessment. Maternal education, cognitive ability, and family involvement were also measured.

An objective tool for assessing the outcome of total knee replacement surgery.

The need for an objective tool to assess the outcome of total knee replacement (TKR) surgery is widely recognized. This study investigates the potential of an objective diagnostic tool for assessing the outcome of TKR surgery based on motion analysis techniques. The diagnostic tool has two main elements: collection of data using motion analysis, and the assessment of knee function using a classifier that is based around the Dempster-Shafer theory of evidence.

Live visualization of protein synthesis in axonal growth cones by microinjection of photoconvertible Kaede into Xenopus embryos.

Photoconvertible fluorescent proteins, such as Kaede, can be switched irreversibly from their native color to a new one. This property can be exploited to visualize de novo mRNA translation, because newly synthesized proteins can be distinguished from preexisting ones by their color. In this protocol, Kaede cDNA linked to the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of beta-actin is delivered into cells fated to become the retina by injection into Xenopus blastomeres.

Role of spirituality in cancer coping among African Americans: a qualitative examination.

Introduction: This study used qualitative methods to examine whether, and if so how, African American cancer survivors use spirituality in coping with the disease. Spirituality was defined using a model involving connectedness to self, others, a higher power, and the world.

Methods: Twenty-three African American patients with various forms of cancer were recruited from physician offices and completed 1-1.

Controlled delivery of anti-sense oligodeoxynucleotide from multilayered biocompatible phosphorylcholine polymer films.

Fabrication of polymeric multilayered films based on the electrostatic self-assembly of polycations and polyanions is a promising approach for controlled loading and release in gene delivery. In this study, we have fabricated a series of multilayered films based on alternate deposition between positively-charged cationic phosphorylcholine copolymer (PC copolymer) and negatively-charged c-myc anti-sense oligodeoxynucleotide (AS-ODN). The growth of film thickness and increase of ODN loading capacity were monitored by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM).

Function and regulation of local axonal translation.

An increasing body of evidence indicates that local axonal translation is required for growing axons to respond appropriately to guidance cues and other stimuli. Recent studies suggest that asymmetrical synthesis of cytoskeletal proteins mediates growth cone turning and that local translation and retrograde transport of transcription factors mediate neuronal survival. Axonal translation is regulated partly by selective axonal localization of mRNAs and by translation initiation factors and RNA-binding proteins.

A spiritually based approach to breast cancer awareness: cognitive response analysis of communication effectiveness.

The purpose of this study was to compare the communication effectiveness of a spiritually based approach to breast cancer early detection education with a secular approach, among African American women, by conducting a cognitive response analysis. A total of 108 women from 6 Alabama churches were randomly assigned by church to receive a spiritually based or secular educational booklet discussing breast cancer early detection. Based on the elaboration likelihood model (Petty & Cacioppo, 1981), after reading the booklets participants were asked to complete a thought-listing task, writing down any thoughts they experienced and rating them as positive, negative, or neutral.

Impact of prolonged exercise in the heat and carbohydrate supplementation on performance of a virtual environment task.

Purpose: The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether performance of a virtual environment (VE) task is influenced by exercise in the heat and carbohydrate supplementation.

Methods: Ten males completed four exercise trials to fatigue. During each trial, subjects cycled at a submaximal workload.

A cytoskeletal platform for local translation in axons.

Recent data indicate that local translation in growth cones is critical for axon guidance. Evidence from the Drosophila midline axon guidance system suggests that the F-actin-microtubule cross-linker Short stop (Shot) might link the translation machinery to the cytoskeleton in the growth cone. The identification of a complex of translation factors attached to the actin and microtubule networks points to a mechanism by which cytoskeletal dynamics regulate translation in axons and vice versa.

The role of cyclic nucleotides in axon guidance.

During the formation of the nervous system, axonal growth cones navigate through the complex environment of the developing embryo to innervate their targets. Growth cones achieve this formidable feat by responding to attractive or repulsive guidance cues expressed at specific points along the trajectory of their growth, which impart the directional information required for accurate pathfinding. While much is known about guidance molecules and their receptors, many questions remain unanswered.

Outsourcing CREB translation to axons to survive.

Nerve growth factor induces sensory neuron survival via retrograde signalling from the axon to the cell body. Local translation of the transcription factor CREB in the axon, followed by its transport to the nucleus, is involved in this process.

The use by Alabama pediatricians of genetics consultation in the evaluation of developmental delay.

Developmental delay (DD) is among the most common serious problems encountered by the general pediatrician. Published guidelines exist that recommend a genetics evaluation be a routine part of the evaluation of these children [Curry et al. (1997) Am J Med Genet 72:468-477; American Academy of Pediatrics (2001) Peds 108:192-195].

NF-protocadherin and TAF1 regulate retinal axon initiation and elongation in vivo.

NF-protocadherin (NFPC)-mediated cell-cell adhesion plays a critical role in vertebrate neural tube formation. NFPC is also expressed during the period of axon tract formation, but little is known about its function in axonogenesis. Here we have tested the role of NFPC and its cytosolic cofactor template-activating factor 1 (TAF1) in the emergence of the Xenopus retinotectal projection.

A role for S1P signalling in axon guidance in the Xenopus visual system.

Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), a lysophospholipid, plays an important chemotactic role in the migration of lymphocytes and germ cells, and is known to regulate aspects of central nervous system development such as neurogenesis and neuronal migration. Its role in axon guidance, however, has not been examined. We show that sphingosine kinase 1, an enzyme that generates S1P, is expressed in areas surrounding the Xenopus retinal axon pathway, and that gain or loss of S1P function in vivo causes errors in axon navigation.

Augmenting continuing education with psychologically focused group consultation: Effects on adoption of group drug counseling.

This study examines whether adding psychologically focused group consultation to a standard 1-day continuing-education workshop on Group Drug Counseling (GDC), a group therapy with evidence of effectiveness in the treatment of substance abuse problems, improves GDC adoption. Counselors who had taken a 1-day workshop were randomly assigned to an 8-week course of group consultation that met for 1.5 hr per session (n = 16) or to no additional contact (n = 14).

Mycophenolate mofetil: effects on clinical transplantation.

Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is the morpholinoethylester prodrug of mycophenolic acid, an agent which inhibits the proliferation of B and T lymphocytes through the noncompetitive, reversible inhibition of inosine monophosphate dehydrogenase, itself a key enzyme in the de novo synthetic pathway of guanosine nucleotides. Currently, MMF is approved for the prevention of acute renal allograft rejection when used in combination with cyclosporin and corticosteroids. Several studies have also demonstrated that this drug is useful in the treatment of refractory rejection in renal, heart and liver transplant recipients.

Reduction, classification and ranking of motion analysis data: an application to osteoarthritic and normal knee function data.

There are certain major obstacles to using motion analysis as an aid to clinical decision making. These include: the difficulty in comprehending large amounts of both corroborating and conflicting information; the subjectivity of data interpretation; the need for visualization; and the quantitative comparison of temporal waveform data. This paper seeks to overcome these obstacles by applying a hybrid approach to the analysis of motion analysis data using principal component analysis (PCA), the Dempster-Shafer (DS) theory of evidence and simplex plots.

Creation of postgraduate training programs for family medicine in Vietnam.

Background And Objectives: The Vietnam Family Medicine Development Project has successfully created postgraduate training programs for family medicine in Vietnam. This paper's objective is to report on the project's progress and provide initial evaluation results.

Methods: A training network of medical schools in Vietnam partnered with family medicine departments in the United States to accomplish the goal of establishing family medicine as a specialty in Vietnam with assistance from the Ministry of Health.

Electroporation of cDNA/Morpholinos to targeted areas of embryonic CNS in Xenopus.

Background: Blastomere injection of mRNA or antisense oligonucleotides has proven effective in analyzing early gene function in Xenopus. However, functional analysis of genes involved in neuronal differentiation and axon pathfinding by this method is often hampered by earlier function of these genes during development. Therefore, fine spatio-temporal control of over-expression or knock-down approaches is required to specifically address the role of a given gene in these processes.